Keeping Watch Over Our Hearts

Watch over your heart with all diligence,  For from it flow the springs of life. Proverbs 4:23 NASB

Those raised around American evangelical traditions tend to think of sin in a legal sense - as a violation of God’s law.  This “crime and punishment” framework can lead us away from experiencing God’s essence as our father.  He is our eternal good father.   What if we saw our sins as violations of the divine fountain of our being - the springs of life flowing in our depths?   Something which God gave humans when when He created us in His likeness.  In the Scriptures, Father God and Jesus warn us with specific examples of how our heart attitudes and actions either protect or harm the purity of our “springs of life”. One such warning is in the Matthew 7:1-2 passage about not judging others in a condemning way lest we be judged by the same measure.  I shared a message about this on Saturday night July 17.  By using scriptures and a story from Brené Brown’s book Rising Strong I hoped to clarify this sometimes misunderstood direction.  Has someone ever told you: Jesus said “don’t judge” so you have no place to judge me about anything?  We need the Trinity’s wisdom. You can watch or listen here on Facebook or here on Blazing Fire’s Worship Service youtube channel.

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To my encouragement and joy, I’ve received feedback from several of you.  This is from Ellie Torrens: ——————— Thank you again for sharing last Saturday night. As I was driving home last Saturday night, I was thinking about some of the things you shared from Matthew 7:1-2 about not judging. As I thought more about it with Holy Spirit, it seemed like Holy Spirit was revealing when we judge people harshly we are probably using that same standard (or worse) on ourselves. That “same measure” of judgement is so hurtful!  It’s even worse when it comes from ourself towards ourself because then we cannot escape the one condemning us.  Judging others creates a prison of cruelty for others and ourselves. This prison really keeps us in a box and keeps our relationships from flourishing. Judgement often times creates labels and results in us labeling others and ourselves incorrectly. By seeking to give others grace and not judging, may we also grow to love ourselves with the same measure.  Which in summary is .... loving your neighbor as yourself. ———————— Some freeing, life-giving truth right there.  Thank you Ellie. With affection,                     Russ Fochler